ABSTRACT
Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in the summer of 1982 constituted a watershed. Between the formal, if not real, ending of the Civil War in 1976 and the invasion, there ensued a period of six years, with characteristics of its own that set the stage for Israel’s dramatic onslaught. From the vantage point of 1982, this period constituted only a brief interlude in Lebanon’s travail, but one whose developments could be of considerable relevance to the future.
